Mystic Worlds

Go Go, Druid Boy!

Gamer geeks are really hysterical.  This is the funniest machinima I've seen in a while.  Here's a lil rap love for Boomkins.

It's Coming

I'll get the finale of my EVE Online trial posted by midweek.  I'm back to work after having been off since the 2nd week in December - burning time before it's lost.  Being back to work sucks! *Smile* I love my job.  I hate my job.  I'm sure you know how that goes.  I ended up working this weekend hence I didn't get around to writing the conclusion.

I did take a couple of hours to unwind this evening by watching The Bourne Ultimatum.  I have to say this is one of the best movie trilogies of all time - probably out right the best for its genre.  I haven't been on the edge of my chair watching a movie like I was the whole time during this one.  WHEW, good stuff!  Hero, thy name is Matt!

Asheron’s Call 2, the Love of My Life

The Online Gamer’s Anthology podcast released a two-show look at Asheron’s Call (AC1).  Listening to the shows brought back my most treasured MMO gaming memories.  I only played AC1 for a few weeks.  I played Asheron’s Call 2 (AC2) the defunct sequel, from release until just before the servers were shutdown.  Here are some of the elements of the game that made it so special to me and my son.

During the time that I was playing AC2, I was spending a lot more time writing.  This game provided many inspirational ideas for fan fiction. I made a horrible mistake by canceling my web hosting service before preserving the hundreds of pages I’d published.  At the time I was so angry with Turbine over the handling and eventual closing of the game, that I wanted nothing more to do with the whole thing.  Hindsight – I definitely cut off my own nose on that one.

EVE Online Trial Part II: The Devil Cashes in His Chips

It’s day four of my EVE Online (EO) trial.  I have my Tristan tricked out and rolling along.  I have two items in my hanger just waiting to be fitted once I complete the required skill training.  The first puppy is a missile launcher.  Knew nothing about them the first time I dabbled in EO.  The second is a salvager that was recommended in corporation chat to all the noobs as a way of making some good cash on rat kills.  Corp chat and our private noob lounge are fun and lively - lots of information sharing, tips, funny stories, hugs and waffles for people getting blown up (giving QQers waffles is a WOW forum thing) and the occasional sexually explicit commentary.

I had just returned to my local station after completing mission 9 of a 10 mission series.  It was mission 8 that had gotten me blown up the day before.  I was a bit anxious approaching the final task in my bright and shiny Tristan.  Just as I’m about to accept the final mission, a spam goes out in corporation chat for all members to head to our Headquarters for a PVP Op.  Some local pirate gang had just blown up and pod-killed four of our players and it was the last straw in a long line of aggressive behavior that must be stopped NOW.  “Oh shit,” I think to my self.  I am so not ready to PVP with these people.  Some of us are noobs for goodness sake.  What the hell is my Tristan going to do against the Battleships and Cruisers they are talking about that are amassing at the gate near our station???

EVE Online Trial Part I: My Soul for 1 Million ISK

It’s day three of my EVE Online (EO) 15-day trial.  As noted in my previous post, “Revisiting EVE Online”, every day I notice something new that makes the introductory experience just a bit easier.  I’m sitting in the station watching Rookie Chat, trying to decide if I want to replace my ship that was recently blown to bits during a Mission.  I’m  NOT happy that the game lagged me as I exited the star-gate and by the time I could do anything, my ship was on fire because it was a trap. I started to warp out but it was too late. I exploded seconds later.

I had the funds to replace the ship four times over but I had been saving for the top of the line frigate for my race, the Tristan.  Was it better to continue missions back in the rookie ship of which I now had two – original and the one the game provides when you show up at a station in your pod (out of ship body encasing) or replace the slightly better ship that I’d lost plus its equipment?  I couldn’t decide what I wanted to do so I was just sitting there reading chat.

Why Nothing Except Fantasy

I was reading a recent post on Massively that was summarizing and discussing the various points of view about why fantasy is so heavily represented in MMOG settings.  I might be in the minority, but I disagree with Kyle’s ascertain that the industry is ripe for a non-fantasy/sci-fi gaming experience.  Personally, I’m not likely to play any game that isn’t fantasy or science fiction. The reason is quite simple.  MMOG universes are an escape for me.  They are a complete departure from what is currently possible in my sphere of reality.  I have zero interest in playing anything that could be remotely possible in my life time.  When I want present-day something, I can turn on the television or read any number of books.  That’s not what I’m looking for in a game.

Revisiting EVE Online

A Little Background

Participating in the Pirates of the Burning Sea BETA got me thinking about EVE Online (EO).  It’s been 18 months or more since I last played. Whew, that’s a long time.  2007 certainly went whizzing by quickly.  Having given away my original account and game CDs to an ex World of Warcraft officer and good online friend at the time, my only recourse to test the waters was the free 14-Day trial.

Many of the bloggers and podcasts hosts that I follow have all dabbled in EO at some point or another, but none stayed the course.  The longest that I can recall would be Ryan and Gary from MOG Army, whose retelling of their corporation’s exploits were quite amusing.  They’ve been long time fans of EO and CCP even when they weren’t playing regularly.  Earlier this year, Ryan actually joined the CCP staff and moved way down south to good ole GA.  *Hurl*  I can totally relate as I recently moved back to GA myself.  But he’s in a real city, Atlanta, while I’m cornered in small town USA, Augusta.  But I digress.

More Thoughts on Pirates of the Burning Sea

Returning to Eve Online (EO) has entered into my mind countless times in the past year but never so much as when I started playing the Pirates of the Burning Sea (PotBS) BETA.  In terms of tone and setting these games are as different as night and day.  However, I expect they are compared more often than Flying Lab would like because of the “you are your ship” type of combat and the truer player driven economy.  So if I’ve rated the game based on my play-style preferences a six and I’m tired of what I’m either playing or not playing, why wouldn’t I just buy PotBS?